This invention relates to welding.
In an automatic or semi-automatic welding machine, if the supply of weld wire runs out while the welding arc is being sustained, the wire stops its normal forward movement through the contact tip of the welding gun. When the wire movement stops while the welding arc is sustained, the wire melts back to the welding contact tip and fuses to the tip. The fused tip must then be eliminated by discarding the tip and inserting a new one, or by breaking loose the fused wire from the tip. In either case welding time is lost, and often an added expense for the tip results.